German renewable energy developer Energiequelle has commissioned a repowered wind farm in Raßlitz, Saxony, increasing its capacity more than fivefold following the replacement of older turbines, the company said on Monday.
The project involved dismantling two 1-megawatt E-58 turbines and installing two Enercon E-160 turbines, each with a capacity of 5.56 megawatts and a hub height of 166.6 metres. The site’s total capacity has increased from 2MW to 11MW.
Energiequelle estimates the new turbines will generate approximately 40.8 gigawatt-hours of electricity annually, enough to power more than 10,000 households.
The company described the development process as protracted and complex. Planning began in 2013 and encountered multiple delays, including changes to local regulations and resistance to wind energy development in the state of Saxony.
“A particularly demanding task was the construction of a dedicated substation,” said Fabian Musall, head of project management at Energiequelle’s Dresden office. “After successfully participating in the Federal Network Agency’s tender and receiving the maximum award, we were informed that the originally planned substation was no longer available due to increased capacity. We had to quickly mobilise all resources to build our own substation.”
The wind farm has now been sold to Encavis AG, a Hamburg-based renewable energy operator with a European portfolio of wind, solar, and energy storage projects.
The commissioning of the Raßlitz site comes as Germany continues efforts to expand renewable energy capacity, though onshore wind development in some federal states has been slowed by regulatory and permitting challenges.
